06.11.10

A Lawyer is Questioning the Definiteness of Death of the SCO Case (Updated)

Posted in GNU/Linux, Law, SCO, UNIX at 3:33 pm by Dr. Roy Schestowitz

Summary: There might be room for an appeal from SCO, argues Christian Einfeldt (above)

THE latest defeat from SCO seemed like the end of it all. IANAL (I am not a lawyer) as the acronym goes, so yesterday it was argued that it only seemed like the very end. Christian Einfeldt, a lawyer, writes to Mitch Kapor in relation to this article: “This appears to be an order of the trial court. I wonder if SCO will appeal?”

There is more coverage and not everyone is certain that it’s the end. Too many false alarms before.

According to this, “Novell can shut down IBM lawsuit”:

SCO was dealt yet another blow in court today when District Judge Ted Stewart rejected the company’s motion requesting a new trial or judgement of law. In a ruling issued today, Judge Stewart sided with a jury that issued a verdict against SCO in April, finding that Novell was the rightful owner of the UNIX SVRX copyrights. According to Judge Stewart, SCO failed to demonstrate that the jury’s verdict contradicted the evidence presented in the case.

What exactly happens next? Can anyone clarify? People have been saying “goodbye” to SCO since 2007 when it declared bankruptcy. We just want to be sure this time around, knowing that SCO is the “Zombie Company”. █

Update: Another lawyer, Andy Updegrove (who is familiar with this case), writes: “Given SCO’s well-demonstrated tenacity and unwillingness to face reality, it may seem unwise to assume we have indeed seen the end of the road.”

Perhaps sites like Groklaw are trying to demoralise SCO and prevent it from pursuing this any further.

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